In the midst of the great western lake, Fleswen ta-Féore, lies a fair wooded isle, Otset-Asath. And in the midst of the isle stands the hidden castle of Endáyra, the Lady of the lake, Asath ta-Hwenet. Long ago during the Age of Preparation, before the Guardianship, she withdrew, of her own will, from the company of the Doitherúna and dwelt apart. It is said that she was high in rank among the Silúna before she sequestered herself from them. And now she dwelt in the isle, attended by her swan-maidens, the Opheleri.
The castle of Endáyra resembled Kapgar Kûm, from which it stood some hundreds of miles to the west, in two things. It had a labyrinthine form, that prevented any but those who possessed the necessary knowledge from reaching its interior, for which it was called of old Aulihaudë Ráda, Spiral Castle; and its inner windings led from the pinnacle of the stronghold down into an opening under the waters of the great lake, by which the Lady and her companions oftentimes passed unobserved into those waters.
Now Silûnakánti, though an Entelláwa by birth, was fostered among the Silúna, and acquired all their skills in water, indeed surpassing most of them in his powers of swimming and endurance under water. Towards the end of his apprenticeship among them, he became enamoured of the Lady Endáyra, who was then also a young nyanda. But after a time they parted from one another, and Endáyra took up her residence on the Isle, while Silûnakánti returned to his people, the Entellári, to enter the service of Queen Tithiánë. But as after events showed, Endáyra and Silûnakánti had this in common, that they desired to look into the secrets and powers of the Deep.
Silûnakánti had become Slungandi. He had served Queen Tithiánë, then turned away from her; he had served Dreygan the Frostgiant, and turned against him. He now had no service and no home. Worst of all, his beloved Talyoran had been lost in the depths of Kapgar Kûm. All the more did he cherish Sporni, the child of the Talyoran. He spent long hours studying its operations. Often he hung it up to see where it pointed, for he knew that it would look for its mother, the Talyoran. So at first, it pointed always towards the heart of Hogunoth, where the Talyoran lay in the deep waters. But a little while after Slungandi returned from the overthrow of Negobith, it began to point further to the west. Slungandi surmised that the Talyoran had shifted her resting place. Moved by the currents of the secret river, she had surely been swept from under the mountains and down to the Lake. If he went there, perhaps, by diving, with Sporni to guide him, he could find her again.
Slungandi took the road to the lake — the same that Groiznath in form of a gulbân, had taken a few months before. And as he journeyed closer, a growing power took hold of Sporni. Whenever the shard was free, it pointed towards the Lake. As they drew nearer, Sporni even pressed against the confines of the wallet in which Slungandi kept him, and sprang out when the flap was opened.
On the final day of his journey, Slungandi came down from the hills into the great western valley. Before him lay the broad Lake, and afar in its midst, the Isle of the Lady. Before the morning was over, Slungandi was at the lakeside. He came to a natural landing-place where the waters lapped on a narrow sandy beach, that was called Segent Ophellúna, hythe of the Swan-folk. And indeed, there were many swans gathered there. As Slungandi approached the shore, he could feel the urgent pressure of Sporni within his wallet, seeking the water. And at the same time, three of the swans, having seen and regarded Slungandi carefully, suddenly took to their wings and flew away rapidly. He watched them as they passed over to the Isle and came to land there.
He retired from the shore to a thicket of trees and bushes, and prepared himself for his underwater venture. He arrayed himself in his dragonhide covering and packed away his clothing in a wallet that was proof against the entry of water, which he slung on his back. Then he returned to the waterside. He opened the wallet in which Sporni quivered restlessly, took him in his hand, and waded into the waters of the lake.
But then Slungandi cried aloud, for Sporni jerked violently and nearly slipped from his grasp, and at that very moment there came a disturbance of the water far out in the midst of the lake. Something shining rose from the water, held aloft by a hand and an arm, clad in a white sleeve. It was a crystal, shining with a great light — the Talyoran indeed. Someone had found her before he could. Sporni strained to go to his shining mother. The hand inclined the Talyoran back and forth, so that beams of light flashed out over the lake. Then it sank back under the waters.
Slungandi recognized that arm, even from so far off. Long ago it had embraced his waist. It was the arm of Endáyra, Lady of the Lake; she had found the Talyoran beneath the waters of her lake before he had had the opportunity to search for it. Anger and desire drove him on. He thrust Sporni safely away, plunged into the lake, and swam with all his might towards the Isle of the Lady.
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